Patrolling the comedy beat

T here is something very comforting about Alfie Moore's broad North Lincolnshire accent. When he calls me for our chat, I imagine that in his day job as Sergeant with Humberside Police he would most likely be the good cop in any good cop/bad cop scenarios that might arise.

Certainly, had he been interviewing me, I'm sure it wouldn't have been long before I had confessed to everything over a nice cup of Yorkshire tea.

After 18 years with the police force, Alfie tells me he is never short of material for his comedy shows, a career path that he branched into just five years ago.

Now, taking a two-year break from the force, he is taking his show I Predicted A Riot on a UK tour, building on the success he found in ITV programme Show Me The Funny (SMTF).

He says: "There is a bit of a funny back-story behind the show. I wrote it last year and it was called I Predict A Riot but I couldn't get time off work to perform it because of the riots that broke out in August!"

The show takes a humorous look at riots and protests throughout history and includes such facts as the Nika Riot of 532AD, which was the largest recorded in history and saw half of Constantinople raised to the ground and 30,000 Roman citizens killed.

It also covers the main causes of protests and riots, such as the economy, oppressed minority groups, race and religion.

Alfie says: "Not a lot changes, really – with the Nika Riot it started when an emperor tried to introduce unpopular austerity measures. The crowds gathered in sporting arenas, like our football stadiums, they wore different coloured togas and chanted.

"When I did research for the show you can see history repeating itself again and again. It's not rocket science to know that violence starts in troubled times. Being involved in the emergency services, I was working on the streets all the time and I could feel people getting angry. There was a lot of tension and I thought that something was brewing.

"You read a lot about the shopkeepers' view on the riots and those of the community but this is a view from the other side of the riot shield, so I thought that it would be a good show."

And despite the seemingly serious issues he tackles, Alfie assures me it is a comedy show at heart.

He says: "It does sound incredibly dark doesn't it? The police are renowned for their dark sense of humour though and a lot of it does seem to end up being funny.

"When I started doing shows I didn't ever say I was a cop but I actually think it is an occupation people are interested in. I've always been a bit of a joker and the material writes itself really.

"I remember being sent out to a human head that was found by a dog walker. I went out to it but by law I was not allowed to pronounce it dead. I had to wait for someone medically qualified to tell me the head was dead. It's the ridiculous things that people say in interviews, the ridiculous complaints I've had made against me, and a lot of anecdotes from court.

"I remember in the riots there was an 18-year-old student Danielle Corns who stole two left-footed trainers. She couldn't even manage a pair.

"I'm sure the judge had a twinkle in his eye when he ordered her not to set foot in Wolverhampton.

"I like to think I'm treading a fine line between comedy genius and unemployment."

Alfie's new career move came out of the blue after his wife took him to a comedy show in Scunthorpe which then led to a stint on SMTF.

He says: "I first went to a live comedy club in 2007 with my wife and just had the most wonderful time. I'd never been to a live comedy show before and I thought 'I need to have a go at that'. It was my mid-life crisis.

"There are parallels between policing and comedy – when you are in the police you're often going into situations that are very tense, especially if drink is involved, and you have to quickly make a connection and get people on side. Comedy is like that, too – there can be a bit of tension in the audience before you start. I have faced knife-wielding maniacs before but this is still more scary.

"And as I said, a lot of my material comes from work. I used to carry around two notebooks, one official one and one for stuff that happened that was funny and I needed to write down."

Luckily for Alfie, when he told his boss he wanted time out to appear on TV and then tour with his show, he was given the green light.

He says: "When SMTF came up I went to see my chief, Tim Hollis, and he was great about it. The modern police force want to be seen to be open and honest. It's actually a great exercise in community engagement.

"I love my job but it would be 12 years before I could retire on my pension for 30 years in the force. Taking a break now, unpaid, seemed a natural thing to do and it means I can try my hand at touring before I'm too old."

Alfie Moore plays The Comedy Box at The Hen and Chicken on Thursday, May 3, at 8.30pm. Tickets cost £12. Tel 0117 902 0344. £1 from every ticket sold goes to Blue Lamp Foundation, a charity set up by PC David Rathbourne to support emergency services.